Friday, February 21, 2014

Fitness Fridays | What's So Different? Healthy Hair Vs Weight Loss

On last week I shared my personal weight loss story with you all. First I want to thank EbonyCPrincess of Longing4Length and KLP of SavingOurStrands along with the other lovely ladies who are hosting this awesome Fitness Friday Link Up! I'm all about empowering and encouraging each other and this Fitness Link Up provides a great platform to do just that! Secondly I want to thank all of the lovely readers who left such heartwarming comments. Sharing my story was truly theraputic for me and I'm so glad that it touched many of you!

Now onto the meat & potatoes of this post. After sharing my weight loss story on last Friday I started thinking about the connection between my weight loss journey and my healthy hair journey. Both have their ups and their downs, frustrating days, plateaus, etc. But aside from that both journey while different in their own ways require the exact same 3 things.

1. Consistency- When I truly got serious about my weight loss journey consistency brought me the best results and likewise I experience the same thing in my hair journey. Now don't get me wrong there's nothing wrong with changing things up sometimes. I try different workouts and deep conditioners all the time, but I've never stopped working out and DCing my hair. I'm a firm believer and example that being consistent with my core regimen regardless of what I'm doing yields results!

2. Persistence- Remember when I mentioned that pesky little word 'Plateau'? In the weight loss world it's code for 'NOTHING IS HAPPENING'! I've experienced plateaus in both my weight loss and healthy hair journey and it was NOT fun any of the times that I experienced it. The thing about weight loss journeys is that sometimes after we've lost a certain amount of weight our bodies may decide for a few weeks that it is not willing to let go of any more weight. You can be doing everything right and experience a plateau or you may have to look over what you've been doing for the last few weeks and make adjustments. Everytime I've expereinced a plateau after I get over the initial frustration of not seeing the results I want I revisit my regimen and see if there is anything that needs improvement. For example, during my weight loss journey I was obsessed with the elliptical machine, however my body adapted and eventually I had to step up my workout game and incorporate other things such as weights, HIIT training, etc to give my body the boost that it needed. Likewise in my hair journey I used to stretch for 4-5 months with minimal length retention. After shortening my stretching time my hair is growing by leaps and bounds! You see the key is to adjust and remain persistent. Do NOT give up!

3. Dedication- Let's face it no matter what it is that you're trying to achieve if you are not dedicated at the first sign of difficulty you're going to jump ship and give up. I know because in the past that's exactly what I did when I wasn't truly dedicated. It is a necessity regardless of if you are trying to lose weight or have long healthy hair.

No matter the journey you will experience great triumphs and sometimes heartbreaking disappointments, but with consistency, persistence, and dedication you WILL prevail in the end!
Dedication

That pesky "P" word makes me cringe! I've plateaued in both my workout routine and hair care regimen so many times I can't even count them all. But you're absolutely right---when what you're doing stops working, maybe it's time to switch it up. Both your hair and body get bored!